SPOTLIGHT ON Donna Michaels and Army Ranger With Benefits

Welcome Donna Michaels to Romance Books 4 Us!

Tell us a little about the kinds of romance you write.

I write hot, humorous, heartwarming romances with alpha heroes and equally strong heroines, although, at times, they just don’t realize how strong they are.

How did your writing career begin?

My writing career began many years ago when I only had one child (I have 4 grown children now). I was tired of reading wishy-washy heroines, and decided to write the kind of book I’d like to read. This was before self-publishing, so I submitted to Harlequin and got a polite rejection. I tried again with a second book, again I got rejected, but with suggestions on what to fix. But I didn’t. I decided to try small press and got picked up by The Wild Rose Press. I wrote for them for a few years before self-publishing came along. I took the plunge with the book Harlequin rejected, and was thrilled Her Fated Cowboy was well-received. It launched my indie career.

Are you indie, traditional or hybrid?

I am a hybrid now. I still have titles with The Wild Rose Press; several self-pubbed series ; AmazonEncore; 6 Kindle World titles (so far); and right now, I’m writing my 5th book for Entangled Publications.

Philosophies or epiphanies on writing or reading you’d like to share?

For me, promoting stinks, because it takes away from my writing time. So just know that you will not be writing all the time. You will promote more than you write.

What advice would you give new writers?

Just that if you really want to be published don’t give up. You have to put yourself out there, learn from criticism, read books from your genre, and BICHOK—butt in chair, hands on keyboards. Keep writing.

Favorite snack while writing?

Chocolate and almonds

What is your superpower?

Attracting all the cats in our house when I’m on a tight deadline. They always choose to come ‘help’ me type when I’m scrambling to get the book finished.

What is your spirit animal?

Easy…if you haven’t just guessed, it’s a cat!

What color is your aura?

I’m not sure, but I do love purple!

Tell us about your latest release!

ARMY RANGER WITH BENEFITS is the 4th book in my military cowboy series with Entangled Publications—The Men of At-Ease Ranch Series. It’s part of their romantic comedy Lovestruck Imprint. Vince is a former Army Ranger who co-owns and runs a transition ranch for veterans, along with his other Army Ranger buddies. He’s the easy-going guy of the bunch, and was so much fun to write!

Author bio

Donna Michaels is a NYT & USA Today bestselling author of hot, humorous, heartwarming reads. Her romances entertain readers of contemporary, contemporary western, romantic comedy, and romantic suspense genres. One was even hand drawn into a Japanese Translation. Now, if only she could read it...

Social Media links:

Website: www.donnamichaelsauthor.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DonnaMichaelsAuthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Donna_Michaels

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/Donna_Michaels

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/donnamichaels/

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Donna-Michaels/e/B008J24XR2/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/donna-michaels

Newsletter: http://tinyurl.com/zaxbqe6

Giveaways?

COMMENT BELOW! 

$10 Amazon GC to a random commenter. Just tell me what kind of hero you like to read. Cowboy, military, or a combination of both?

Thanks for reading,

~Donna

Guest Blog: Donna Michaels: Can Watching TV Help You Write?

It depends on what you watch.

For me, yes. Watching certain shows is a huge help. The key, of course, is good writing. From characterization to plot twists to out-of-the-box thinking, you can find it all on TV. Even reality TV.

Several years ago, I started watching a new show called The Bachelor. Yep, I know, what? lol This got me thinking, what if one of the contestants was undercover to protect the groom? Boom. That translated into a fun, humorous, and slightly suspenseful, romantic contemporary I sold to The Wild Rose Press, which I now have the rights back to and is self published under the title SHE DOES KNOW JACK. Who would’ve thought watching a reality show would get me a NOR Reviewer Top Pick?

Shows like NCIS, Supernatural, and Stargate SG-1 are huge on characterization. Watching them week after week, for years, you see the characters grow, make mistakes, and learn all with humor sprinkled throughout. Wonderful lessons to follow in your writing. I used them while writing HER UNIFORM COWBOY, Book 3 in my cowboy series, and this garnered me, not only a NOR Reviewer Top Pick, but a Crown Heart of Excellence from InD’tale Magazine, plus Kade was voted Best Cowboy in a Book/Reader’s Choice-LRC.

The dialogue in those three shows is strong, too. I find myself watching, waiting for certain characters (Tony DiNozo, Dean Winchester, Jack O’Neal) to open their mouths because you just never know what is going to come out. Priceless. I would’ve given my eye teeth to write Jack O’Neal. He was a stubborn, alpha hero (I’m a sucker for military men), very funny with wonderful chemistry with Dr. Daniel Jackson. Watching them interact, even now on DVD, you can see the dynamics of the relationship between two unlikely friends. Definitely something a writer can carry over into their books. Especially a series. I use buddy/buddy chemistry in my Harland County Series. 

Like in my latest release, Book Four: HER FOREVER COWBOY. The hero, Kevin, is similar to Tony DiNozo, a charismatic lady’s man with a brain like Tim McGee and an aversion to relationships like Leroy Jethro Gibbs. His relationship with his cousin and two childhood friends, however, is strong, like that of Jack and Daniel, and the others from NCIS. Their banter often has me laughing out loud and that is what I want for my readers.

And if you’re looking for the unexpected, then you’ll benefit from watching Sherlock, Sleepy Hollow and Once Upon A Time. Their twist on familiar characters is inspiring. Watching them definitely teaches to think out-side-the-box. Nothing is set in stone. The sky is the limit. So, go on, take a break from writing and watch some TV. You never know, you just might make your characters…more.

BLURB: Book Four/Kevin: Her Forever Cowboy

Buy link will be available here: www.donnamichaelsauthor.com

Single mother Shayla Ryan is tired of running, and longs to put down roots to create a stable environment for her baby girl and her younger sister. Having grown up with the opposite, she’s determined to raise her daughter right, and Harland County holds a lot of appeal. Too much appeal, in the form of a Casanova cowboy with eye-catching good looks and easy charm. It was time to settle down, create a forever home, and despite the fact the sexy cowboy interferes with her pulse, he’s made it perfectly clear he’s allergic to forever.

If there’s one thing software company vice president, Kevin Dalton loves more than puzzles, it’s women. Size, shape, race doesn’t matter as long as they don’t want a relationship. Been there, done that. He’s not looking to repeat the past, and happy to remain single. Until two beautiful redheads drop him to his knees—one with her cutie-pie smile, the other with her elbow. Too bad the elbow-toting beauty was both hot and puzzling. A killer combination too strong to resist. So he doesn’t, and without realizing it, the redheads slowly rewrite the code around his heart.

But when a danger from the woman’s past shows up and threatens the girls’ future, will he rise to the challenge and fight to keep them in his life? And if he does, can he really be what they need? A forever cowboy?

BIO:

Donna writes Romaginative Fiction—romance through the H’s—Hot, Humorous & Heartwarming. In eBook and print, her titles range from sweet to hot, short to epic and anything in between. You can find the ratings and length next to the book on her website. Donna lives in Northeast PA where they experience all four seasons, although, she wouldn’t mind hanging onto summer a bit more and winter a bit less. Married to a career military man, she has four children, and an assortment of rescued cats. 

Voted most likely to succeed in high school, Donna took that title to heart and set her sights on a writing career. Winner of eHarlequin’s Round Robin Writer Contest, she turned to the Internet and now has several titles published through The Wild Rose Press, one with Whimsical Publications, and  several self-published novels, including the Amazon Best Selling Harland County Series, with her latest release, Book Four/Kevin: HER FOREVER COWBOY.

Donna’s links:

http://www.donnamichaelsauthor.com 
https://www.facebook.com/DonnaMichaelsAuthor
https://twitter.com/Donna_Michaels
http://donnamichaelsauthor.blogspot.com/
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/donna-michaels/8/879/408 

http://www.goodreads.com/Donna_Michaels
http://pinterest.com/donnamichaels/
https://plus.google.com/110301062410249005533/about/p/pub?hl=en